How does biotin help hair growth?
Biotin is one vitamin which people associate with hair health and growth. In contrast to regular multivitamin supplements, the ones used to prevent and correct hair fall invariably includes biotin as its chief ingredient. The concentration varies from few micrograms to up to 10 mg.
Is biotin really the wonder vitamin for hair fall?
Biotin is important for skin, hair, eye and brain function. It has to be regularly consumed as it is not stored in the body. Biotin deficiency directly manifests with failure to grow hair or weak shaft which breaks or hair shedding. There are diseases where genetically the ability to utilise biotin is defective.
These patients have fragile or falling hair which gets corrected when they are supplemented in the form of tablets. So, it is proven that adequate biotin reserve is necessary for healthy hair growth and deficiency leads to hair fall. Hence, it finds its definite place in hair supplements. In normal people though, biotin deficiency is rare.
The daily requirement for biotin is low (about 30 microgram per day) and it is present in many common foods like egg yolk, nuts, bananas, legumes etc. They are also produced by healthy gut microbiome.
At times the gut microbiome is poor/damaged in many people due to changing lifestyle and food habits.
-Frequent or prolonged or improper use of antibiotics can also damage gut flora. -Certain other medications, stress, intestinal problems and chronic diseases which leads to persistent inflammation in body can affect gut flora too, leading to poor production of biotin.
-Consuming raw eggs can prevent the biotin in egg from getting absorbed.
-Strict fad diets and processed foods can cause deficiency. So, it makes sense to include biotin as a supplement when treating hair fall even if the person is otherwise healthy.
A concentration as low as few micrograms to 1mg is sufficient for routine use. Higher doses help only in people with proven biotin deficiency.
Hair growth supplements have biotin in addition to many other vitamins, minerals and antioxidants. A combination of all these would be better than biotin in isolation, since they would be addressing many such unknown or inapparent deficiencies. The best results are seen when they are taken for a minimum of 3 to 6 months. This helps in providing steady nutrition to growing hair roots and also replenish the reserves.
In case of persistent hair fall, always consult a qualified dermatologist to evaluate for other causes like hormonal problems, gross deficiencies and scalp diseases to get appropriate treatment.
